“Frontier market scouts discover local entrepreneurs, help entrepreneurs discover investors, and help investors discover entrepreneurs in places that need both the most,” says Dr. Yuwei Shi, the founder of the program and dean of GSIPM. “In the process, the scouts discover themselves, their passion, their talent, their fortitude and adaptability, and their career and life paths.”

Before being dispatched for their six-month assignment in the developing world, the initial group of scouts went through an intensive training program delivered by leading experts and practitioners in the social entrepreneurship and investment field. The program selects young professionals with solid background in business and management, experience and adaptability in challenging environments, and strong belief in enterprise and market development as one of the most important means to sustainable improvement of living standards in low-income countries. The program will continue to train and send scouts to frontier markets on a semi-annual basis, with the second round of the program set to begin in June.

For more information on the Frontier Market Scouts Program, please contact Leslie Buckalew at lbuckalew@miis.edu or 831.647.3574.